


7 Stages of Attraction

by nessalk



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Bands, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Dance, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Inspired by Music, Nightclub, Reylo - Freeform, Reylo Drabbles, That electric moment when your eyes lock and gravity shifts, smut in your immediate future, when you keep getting distracted from your job by a pair of pretty eyes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-09 13:46:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14717213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nessalk/pseuds/nessalk
Summary: Stage 1: Run into brick wall. Brick wall turns out to be giant slab of man with shampoo model hair and lips that pretty much force Rey to think dirty thoughts.7-part drabbles series in which Rey finally experiences that gravity-bending, electric chemistry that all the songs in the nightclub keep promising.





	1. The meet cute

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Latch](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/382604) by Disclosure ft. Sat Smith. 



Though it was still hours away from opening, the Resistance halls were crowded with waitstaff and kitchen staff preparing for the night. Truthfully, Rey had never seen the nightclub this crowded. The Resistance was located far from the Coruscant City center in a neighborhood that had been called “industrial” by a generous magazine reviewer. Poe managed to drum up enough business to keep the club running even on a week night, but this was the first time Rey began to feel claustrophobic.

“Excuse me, can I just—oh!” The person she’d been trying to sidle past stepped right back into her. It felt like slamming into a brick wall. Normally, Rey would have no problem sidestepping but the stack of towels she carried wobbled precariously before falling into a pile on the floor. “Shit, we just cleaned those.”

“Fuck, sorry, let me—”

Both Rey and the brick wall went down on their knees to pick up her towels.

“No, it’s not your fault. It’s kinda hard to see in here and I—” Rey trailed off as she finally allowed herself to look up at the person she’d bumped into. She was close enough to make out his features—long face, full lips and wavy dark hair. Then his brown eyes caught hers. It was as if all the oxygen had been sucked out of the room or stepping out into the sun after hours in a darkroom. Everything fell away.

His eyes dropped to her lips and her heart ker-thumped so hard she swore she could hear it.

“Where are those extension chords!”

“Rey, Finn needs your help in the kitchen!”

They both straightened as a red-haired man and Rose entered the hallway.

“Oh my god, I think Finn really blew up the stove this time.” Rose grabbed Rey’s arm and tugged her towards the kitchen. “We need to help him before Holdo finds out.”

“Sure,” Rey said in a breathless falsetto. She shook herself and repeated in her normal voice, “Uh, yeah, of course.” But she kept looking back.

The man was walking to the door that lead to the stage. His friend was shaking his head and taking some of the extension chords from his arms.Before the door shut, he glanced back and the contents in Rey’s stomach promptly turned into hyper butterflies.

“Who was that?”

“Who?”

“The guy in the hallway? He’s not part of the kitchen staff, is he?”

“Oh, I think he’s in that band Poe was able to book for tonight—Knights of Ren”


	2. When you can’t stop glancing at him

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey set her bottle down on the bar. His brown eyes followed the movement before flicking back up to her face. It wasn’t a lecherous gaze, but it didn’t hide its perusal. Or the heat in their depths. Her blood turned to nitro in her veins.

He was one of those people. Rey should have figured. Of course a member of an up and coming band would be surrounded by a posse of beautiful people. Rey tried not to mind as she brought drinks, cleaned tables and collected empty glasses in her decidedly non-designer clothes. If her eyes kept drifting to the table in the corner nearest the stage, well, she was just doing her job as a server.

 

Right.

 

Between Finn's accident in the kitchen and the AC malfunctioning, Poe had kept her behind the scenes until well past the band's performance. Every once in a while, music drifted into the backroom where the monstrous out-dated AC was kept. She wasn’t ashamed to admit she paused her work to listen and even once dropped her wrench when she heard a deep voice. There was a certain quality to it that made it seem almost… tactile. It reminded Rey of being enveloped by a fur coat like a posh lady and swallowing brandy all at once.

 

On a regular Saturday night, Rose and Jess would have had the floor well in hand. But the influx of Knights of Ren fans meant Rey had been drafted to help with the waitstaff even if she was in grimy cutoffs and worn shirt. Rey finished wiping down a table and glanced at him again. They were all moving to the dance floor though, Rey was pleased to see, no girl claimed his arm.

 

Biting her lip, Rey tried to decide why exactly she couldn’t stop looking at him. From afar, he was easily taller than most of his bandmates, broad shouldered, and the short sleeves of shirt revealed biceps corded with muscle.His hair looked…well, honestly, it made Rey a little self conscious since _her_ hair never turned out so glossy and well kept. The man wasn’t dashing like Poe or charming like Finn. But the more she kept looking, the more she couldn’t put her finger on it. Was it his lips? They were the kind of lips girls dreamed about kissing. Or was it his eyes? They were dark and intense and the expression behind them was…

 

He looked up and Rey flushed, immediately turning away. What was the matter with her? They had one tiny, insignificant exchange in the hallway hours ago. No big deal. Now she was staring at him like a full blown stalker.

 

"Thanks again for all your help," Poe greeted her as she set a tray full of glasses behind the bar. He flashed her that infamous smile that made women and more than a few men buying more alcohol than they should. “Looks like you’re putting that engineering degree to use sooner than you expected.”

 

"Don't thank me yet,” Rey slipped her notebook out from her apron pocket and stuck the pen behind her ear. “We need a four screwdrivers, five cosmopolitans and, uh, six beers for table six."

 

Poe winced. He was the only bartender on this floor since Bodi had gone home sick. “Why don’t you take five. The groupies and fan girls can wait a little."

 

“Thanks, boss,” Rey leaned down and swiped her water bottle from behind the bar. Turning around, she gulped down the water and glanced at the dance floor.

 

Their eyes locked. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on her end. Her heart skipped a beat then started double time. It was exactly the same feeling as earlier in the hallway. Like the center of gravity shifting or seeing sunlight through a storm. He was the center of a circle of frenzied dancers. Men and women tossed their arms into the air and gyrated their bodies. He didn’t. He was only looking at her.

 

Rey set her bottle down on the bar, breathless.His eyes followed the movement before flicking back up to her face. It wasn’t a lecherous gaze, but it didn’t hide its perusal. Or the heat in their depths. Her blood turned to nitro in her veins.

 

Without breaking eye contact, he started walking towards her.

 


	3. First conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which introductions are made and Rey’s friends are the best ever.

The bass pulsed a lazy tempo that felt like Rey’s heart in slow motion. The oddest details stuck in her mind—the flash of blue lights against his cheek, the faintest quirk of his lips, the way the crowd parted around him like water. Without realizing it, Rey had moved to meet him halfway.She blinked at finding herself so close to the object of her (unhealthy) obsession.

“Hi," she said. It sounded smooth & calm while a tiny voice in the back of her mind shrieked, There’s no way this is real.

His lips moved, but the music crescendoed and drowned out his words. Rey shook her head and pointed to her ears. The man leaned down, down and said, “You’ve been hard to find.”

"I've been working all night,” she managed. The combination of his words and that voice—he had the voice she overheard earlier!—was enough to make her breathless. She was lucky needed to stand almost cheek-to-cheek with him to carry a conversation.She didn’t know if her knees could handle the intensity of his gaze on top of everything else.

He stepped back far enough to take in the pen stuck to her ear and her apron. The gaze wasn’t dismissive, as most, or disdainful, as some, but thoughtful and appraising. He leaned in close again and Rey caught a whiff of him—bergamot, mahogany and spice. “I asked Poe if Jess and Rose were the only servers tonight.”

Rey had to bite her lip to keep the giddiness from showing in her face. Nobody on the waitstaff wore name tags. The fact that he’d bothered to learn everybody’s names at all meant he really had been looking for her. “Dealing with a busted AC and some wonky wiring in the bell tower.”

“You were the one climbing that deathtrap earlier this evening?”

“How’d you think we got a back a satellite dish up there?” Rey shrugged. At the alarm in his voice, she couldn’t help the wicked little grin from blossoming. “Were you scared for me?”

“I like you in talking-distance.” His breath against her ear send shivers up and down her body.She was either getting sick or high or both.

“I only ever get called out to the front when there’s this much people.”

“Gotta remember to bring twice the number tomorrow night then.”

She laughed and turned to him just as he drew back. Her lips brushed his cheek and the touch sent electricity zinging through her spine. Their gazes met and whatever she’d been about to say died on her lips.

“Do you—” He bit his lip and a looked of pained restraint crossed his features. “I’m Ben.”

“I’m—” Someone bumped into her from and she stumbled into him. She steadied herself against his chest while his hands engulfed her hips. His hands were large, spanning the width of her waist, and it was warm and comforting and thrilling all at once. When his thumbs gently brushed against her side, she swore she was about to get a heart attack.

“Maybe not twice as much tomorrow,” Ben muttered underneath his breath, sounding wry and amused all at once. “Do you wanna go somewhere a little less…”

“Uh,” Rey was having a hard time breathing let alone concentrating on his words. His chest was solid underneath her palms and her hands didn’t seem to want to come off. What did he say? “I have…”

She glanced at the bar behind Ben’s arm and immediately jerked back. Poe, Jess, Rose and even Finn were staring avidly at her.When they caught her attention, the girls pumped their fists in the air, Finn made kissy faces and Poe winked and held up his thumb.

Still, she hesitated. Rey had never been one to indulge. Growing up in the system the way she had, she’d never had the luxury of eating whenever she liked, or buying clothes that weren’t from Goodwill or daydreaming about princes whisking her away to a castle. Fairytales weren’t real. But something about Ben made her think that maybe, just maybe, she was dead wrong.

“Come with me,” Ben whispered against her ear.

Rey nodded.


	4. Kiss the girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The moment the crab, the seagull and all the fish in the lagoon have been waiting for

Disbelief mingled with desire made Rey quiet even when the music faded down the hallway and they waited for the elevator. Thoughts darted quicksilver under the surface, but dopamine held fast. She’d never done this, had no clue what came next or after, but she was certain of two things: 1) she wanted Ben, and 2) he wanted her. Freed from the uncertainty of hours ago, Rey felt herself getting swept away by a growing tide of want.

The old-fashioned cage elevator descended into view, dinged and opened. A large group of women wearing matching shirts proclaiming TEAM BRIDE and carrying margarita glasses laughed as they swept past. Ben and Rey moved to either side of the hallway to let them pass, but their eyes locked again. Her gaze focused on his lips.

_I’m never going to make it past the elevator if I keep staring him_ , Rey thought as they moved into the elevator. She averted her gaze as she hit the button for the top floor. Except now that she wasn’t looking at him, every other sense was attuned to his presence—the sound of his breath, the warmth of his shoulder against hers and his fingers so close to her own. He twitched his hand, or perhaps, she did and their fingers tangled. His fingers dragged lightly against her palm and the gesture felt like the single most erotic experience in her life. She let out a quick intake of breath.

“Fuck it,” Ben muttered.

In unison, they turned to each other. His hands were strong and sure around her body as she tilted her face up to him. But, to her frustration, he stopped mere centimes from her lips. In desperation, she carded her fingers through his hair and surged forward. Fireworks exploded behind her lids.

Kissing Ben was better than listening to her favorite song, or driving down an empty stretch of desert at top speed, or eating vanilla ice cream on a hot day. She could spend all day kissing him and never tire of it.

Oh my god, Rey thought. It's true. All those songs were true.

Ben gasped for breath, and Rey couldn’t help the smile from breaking over face.

The elevator door dinged. Ben staggered away from her, dazed. Rey looked down as half a dozen people piled in and chattered about the new Zedd single. The microscopic sensible part of Rey that still existed was relieved for the momentary reprieve. Her cheeks were bright red and her heart hammered in her chest. She was almost certain everyone knew what they’d been doing, but nobody seemed to be giving them any attention. But the larger, galaxy-sized part of Rey clamored for more, more, more.

Ben laughed underneath his breath and she tilted her head towards him in question. He must have read some of her thoughts because his answering smile—wide, delighted and shy—conveyed his response more perfectly than words ever could.


	5. Stage 5: I like getting to know you

The _Resistance_ lounge occupied the entire fourth floor of the converted building. The bar occupied the central space with smaller rooms branching out. Scattered around it were comfortable couches and squat tables, and private booths in cozy nooks. It was the perfect space to catch a breather from any of the dance floors below and speak without shouting into your friends’ ears.

If they could make it that far.

Ben had her pinned against a pillar, fingers tugging at her hair so he could kiss her neck, her cheeks, collarbone. Rey was no better. A hand fisted on his shirt to anchor him to her while the other slipped underneath to stroke his back. She kept trying to kiss him, but he dodged her once then twice.

“Wait,” Ben gasped, “Wait, I need to ask. What’s your name?”

Rey froze.

“I mean,” Ben sensed her sudden stillness and took a tiny, minuscule step back. “If you don’t want to—I totally get—”

“Rey,” she breathed. She took a deep breath to clear some of the hormones fogging her mind.

“Rey,” he smiled a little, tasting her name. “It suits. I’ve been calling you sunflower girl in my head since I bumped into you.”

“Sunflower? Oh, my—!” Rey tugged at her soft, worn shirt with the sunflower print in the front and blushed. It was so faded it was a wonder he saw it on the dark. Then, with barely disguised humor, she asked, “So do I get to call you Batman?”

“I’m not wearing a Batman shirt.”

“Isn’t that line from Batman?” she brushed the tattoo she’d spied only minutes ago when he’d put his hand against the wall. In small script in his inner arm, a line read: Men have limits. I ignore mine.

There was no other word to describe it. Ben was adorable when he blushed. Even the tips of his ears turned pink.

“Don’t tell me no one else has noticed.”

“Uh…”

Rey gave a great belly laugh. “So people have been looking at that tattoo thinking—oh, he’s so hardcore—but actually you’re just a big Batman nerd!”

“I shouldn’t have started talking,” he grumbled and hooked a finger into one of the belt loops around her cutoffs. “I shot myself in the foot, didn’t I?”

“Just a little, but… “ Her giggles faded as she ran her hands up and down his chest. Realization set in like brandy warming her. “I like getting to know you.”

 


	6. Stage 6: Option 3

It was as easy to get swept away in conversation with Ben as it was to get lost in kissing him. Ben had a dry, morbid sense of humor combined with a keen intellect. He liked Batman comics, but hated the movies. He preferred to focus entirely on his talent with voice and guitar while on stage, but admitted that he admired the versatility and showmanship of David Bowie and Queen. He loved calligraphy and used it to write swear words in bathrooms as a teenager. He was well-read, cultured, and a bit of an anarchist.

Rey...was none of those things. But Ben seemed to treat her with the same wonder and burning curiosity she regarded him. He was endlessly fascinated by her studies, her growing bonsai garden, and the various odd jobs she'd taken before landing her full time gig in the Resistance.

She had no illusions that her life was glamorous, but she did respect the fruits of her labor. It was honest and it was hers. But talking about it with Ben made her think of it a little differently—that it was something to be admired and even proud of. He even insisted on seeing some of her jerry-rigged inventions around the nightclub.

“I can’t believe you climbed that thing," Ben said flatly once Rey showed him the old belltower with its satellite dish. “It's literally a moldering ruin with chunks falling off.”

“Please.” Rey swiftly grabbed hold of a piece of brick and hoisted herself up the next few feet. “See? It’s just the facade crumbling. It makes for good hand—”

“I believe you.” He’d grabbed hold of her waist before she could climb any further. The warmth of his fingers against her shirt had, as usual, wreaked havoc with her focus. His voice had gone low with urgency and command. “Please come down.”

“It’s perfectly safe,” Rey said, blinking down at him. He was staring straight ahead, though, and swallowed.

“I know, I just…” He trailed off and squeezed her waist. “Come down for me?”

“Sure,” she said. He seemed reluctant to let her go, so she turned, placed her hands around his shoulders and let him lift her off.

Ben took several steps back and then paused, effortlessly holding her entire weight by the backs of her thighs against his chest. Rey had never been carried before, had never known that the sensation of being carried could be such a turn on, but now, combined with the expression on his face as he looked up at her? Rey’s arms trembled. He mouthed against her stomach and it made Rey gasp and clutch at his hair. He kissed her once, twice, before slowly letting her slide down.

The tension that had been simmering in the background all night, kept at bay but never broken, burst into the surface. Rey’s toes barely touched ground before she was surging upwards, winding her arms around his neck. Ben kissed her with a dizzying intensity that made Rey realize—he'd been holding backbefore. A fierce, answering spike of lust flooded her veins. A small part of her had wondered, maybe, if she'd been alone in her fierce, almost animal attraction. While she loved getting to know Ben, a hungry wanton part—the part that she’d kept fiercely locked away—had wondered why they'd stopped. She wanted him. Needed him. Right. Now.

A wild recklessness scattered all caution to the wind. They were alone. The rooftop seating area had long been abandoned because of the late spring chill. The only source of light was the lone bonfire flickering in a firepit surrounded by chaise lounges.

“Rey, Rey, Rey,” Ben breathed her name in between kisses. Her name sounded like a prayer, like a chant to some deity. “Please give me your number.”

“What?” Rey asked, distracted. They were stumbling towards the chaise lounges, too busy to pay much attention to their surroundings. The backs of Rey’s knees hit the edge of one and she toppled over. The mattress was cold, but it didn't matter. Between the fire and Ben's length pressed against her body, Rey was more than sufficiently warmed up. The ache between her legs was fast becoming unbearable. She opened her legs and pressed her core against the answering hardness in Ben's jeans.

“Because I would love to take you out tomorrow,” Ben’s hand slipped underneath her shirt and explored her skin, leaving trails of fire in their wake. She writhed against him. “Maybe take the ferry to Varykino. Or take you to a Coruscanti diner. Or—” He gasped as his hips rolled against her center. “Or I can keep you in bed all day.”

“Option 3 please,” Rey gasped. “Option 3. Starting right now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update. I had a really busy day at work and I had a really hard time writing this scene. I don't usually write sex scenes so it took way longer than it should have for me to get this down. I don't have a beta so apologies for any mistakes/typos. I will update once I get some sleep.
> 
> I should have said this before but THANK YOU SO MUCH to everyone who's taken the time to comment, leave me kudos, bookmark and subscribe. Ya'll are the best and you keep me writing faster.
> 
> Lastly, you can follow me on tumblr at moonshotsandarchimedeslevers. I'm going to start more reylo pieces soon and I'll post up snippets and schedules soon.


	7. Stage 7: I like you

Rey woke up to the smell of sizzling bacon. She pushed the thick comforter away from her head andsat up. The mattress underneath her definitely wasn’t her own. Her bed was nowhere near this comfortable and the sheets nowhere near so soft. A familiar voice drifted somewhere beyond the room—deep, resonant and almost bell-like.

Beautiful, beautiful brown eyes, full lips, dark, thick hair and a body she’d kissed, explored, marked and nipped. Ben. In the morning light, he could almost be a dream—a fantasy Rey never dared indulged while scrabbling in Plutt’s junkyard.

But the deep ache in her body was proof of her memories. It hadn’t been a dream. She’d—Rey blushed. She’d pinned him underneath her in the chaise lounge, ridden him _hard_ , even as he’d begged her to let him take her back to his apartment.

She had. Eventually. After a too-long Uber ride where her hands wandered all over his chest, his lap, his hair and his face. By the time they’d stumbled into Ben’s apartment, it’d been his turn to pin her against the wall, legs secure around his trim waist and his hips snapped against her so hard her teeth rattled and books fell off shelves. And after that…

Familiar heat curled up in her belly. She threw the covers off and only then noticed the glass of water sitting by the bedside table. The solitary sunbeam streaming through the window glinted off the condensation on the glass along with the cracked surface of her phone. Finn’s beat up hand-me-down was plugged into the socket in the wall.

Something soft, something dangerous, something light unfurled in Rey’s chest. She sipped the orange juice and went in search of Ben.

His apartment was large, with huge windows that overlooked a deep green garden and, beyond, hills dotted with houses. Rey would have liked to explore the space, but she was hungry and, well, she wasn’t very good at resisting the man singing in the kitchen.

Ben was dressed in a faded Rolling Stones shirt and pajama bottoms that hung low around his waist. He was so intent on cutting apples that he didn’t seem to notice the bacon beginning to burn on the pan. On the sideboard was a platter that held slices of toast, runny eggs and burnt, crispybacon or bacon that hadn’t seen enough time on the pan.

Looking at Ben humming as he sliced the apples, that feeling came back. It started sometime during their conversations in the lounge, persisted in the rooftop and flared again when she'd seen the charged phone on the bedside table. Thinking back on the night before, Rey couldn’t decide what she liked best—the phenomenal sex, his dry humor, kissing him, his thoughtfulness or his sheer persistence in getting to know her. At some point during the night, he’d refused to let her come until she’d given him her phone number.

Maybe it should have scared her. Maybe she should take a chance.

“Hey,” Ben said when he noticed her. His eyes lit up and a smile spread across his lips. “Was just about to get you.”

The feeling grew and grew until Rey couldn’t help it. She reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind his ear and smiled back.

“What?” He asked, turning to press a kiss against the palm of her hand.

“Nothing,” she said. She bumped his hip so she could save the burning bacon on the pan. “I just like you.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it, folks! The end of the line. This is my first reylo fanfiction completed in just one week and I am so darned proud. It's been a wonderful learning experience. Thank you so much to everyone for taking the time to read, leave me kudos and comments and give me feedback. 
> 
> I'm participating in the Reylo Fanfiction Anthology, so I'll be working on that for the next few weeks. In the meantime, I'll be posting up little one-shots at moonshotsandarchimedeslevers on tumblr.


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